Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) middleweights Nate Marquardt and Brad Tavares fought to remain relevant last night (Sat., Jan. 3, 2015) at UFC 182 inside the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Prior to last night, Marquardt finally returned to the win column after a dreadful end to his welterweight run. With a win over Brad Tavares, Marquardt had an outside shot at recovering his long lost position inside the top 15 of the middleweight division.
Similarly, Tavares was in the midst of his own rough streak. After winning seven of his first eight UFC bouts, Tavares ran into a pair of walls, in the form of Yoel Romero and Tim Boestch.
Luckily, Tavares pushed back into the win column last night.
The first round was largely a feeling-out process. There were a lot more feints than strikes, as both men traded a few low kicks and even front kicks. Overall, Marquardt may have landed the slightly cleaner shots, but Tavares controlled the center of the Octagon for much of the round, making it either fighter's round.
Marquardt began pursuing the takedown in the second round, but Tavares' historically sound takedown defense remained solid. As the round wore on, Tavares began to open up with his striking. Primarily, Tavares landed some debilitating low kicks and heavy jabs.
After throwing a few kicks of his own, Marquardt looked for a takedown from the clinch. He had good position, but Tavares countered the takedown attempt with a heavy overhook and throw attempt. For the rest of the round, the two men traded some smaller shots, with Tavares continuing to get the better of exchanges.
The third round continued to play out in Tavares' favor. Marquardt had largely sunk into a defensive shell, allowing Tavares to open up even more and do extra damage. By the end of the round, Marquardt was pretty severely beaten down.
Tavares' largely displayed the same game he's had for some time. He doesn't have a ton of power, but his technical kickboxing and takedown defense is enough to win him the fight. It would really benefit him to up his aggression, as Tavares may have been able to secure a late finish.
However, Tavares' jab seemed greatly improved. Since he's a distance striker, that's a great tool for him to further develop. Tavares is a young fighter and has time to grow still, and this is a definite positive sign. For his next bout, Tavares should scrap with Costas Philippou.
Marquardt is plagued by the same problem that he's had throughout his career. He doesn't really have a developed kicking game, which often leaves him stranded at kicking range. When he can't secure a takedown or force a boxing match, Marquardt's leg ends up as mincemeat.
Still, it's a good sign that Marquardt's chin held up. Tavares may not be the hardest punching middleweight, but he's a fairly technical striker that connected cleanly a number of times. In his next bout, Marquardt should face off with a journeyman, someone along the lines of Sam Alvey.
At UFC 182, Brad Tavares returned to his winning ways at the expense of Nate Marquardt. Can the Hawaiian fighter rebuild his previous win streak?
For complete UFC 182 "Jones vs Cormier" results and play-by-play, click HERE.